Category Archives: Book Reviews

Book Review – CBC Zephaniah (Richard Patterson)

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Next up in my journey through the minor prophets with the aid of the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary Volume 10 is Zephaniah.

Introduction

Patterson identifies the Day of the Lord as the primary theme of Zephaniah. He dates it early in Josiah’s reign, at a time where there was much syncretism. Zephaniah writes not just to inform people about God’s future program, but to exhort them to surrender to God, to repent and seek him.

Commentary

On Zeph 1, Patterson explains that “the Day of the Lord” refers to that time when, for his glory and in accordance with his purposes, God intervenes in human affairs to execute judgment against sin and/or deliver his people. The people of Judah were behaving like pagans. Patterson sees a partial fulfilment of these prophecies in Jerusalem’s fall in 586BC, with other elements being fulfilled in various historical epochs (e.g. A.D. 70). Patterson draws out a challenge for Christians not to sit idly by as a lost world heads towards the day of the Lord.

Zeph 2 includes themes of a godly remnant, of judgment and hope, the seriousness of sin and the sovereignty of God. Much of the fault for the nations disobedience could be accounted to the leadership’s failure to encourage the fear of the Lord (Zeph 3:1-7).

Zeph 3:8-20 is a passage of hope for the remnant – God will deem his people’s punishment completed and bring them happiness as their ultimate good. I was somewhat surprised, and a little disappointed, to note that Patterson passes over Zeph 3:17 with barely any comment – a curious omission considering this is one of the most cherished verses in the Bible. Indeed, his comments on this section are more focused on the “divine shepherd”, but he fails to explain which verse(s) in particular he finds this motif in.

This is, I suppose, both a strength and weakness of the CBC series. It is brief enough to be useful to those without the time or inclination to engage with every exegetical option, and can be relied upon to provide some pertinent observations on the contemporary relevance of the major themes of the passage. However, its brevity means that several potentially fruitful theological avenues will inevitably be left unexplored.

Book Review – Counterfeit Gods (Tim Keller)

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I was deeply impressed by the first book by Tim Keller I read, The Prodigal God, which is a simply outstanding expounding on the nature of the gospel looking at the well-known parable of the prodigal son. This one maintains the high standard, this time tackling the subject of idolatry. Again, it is not only well-written, but profound, penetrative and deeply insightful.

Keller’s thesis is that the human heart is an “idol factory”, that takes good things and turns them into ultimate things – God substitutes, or “counterfeit gods”, which will always disappoint us, often destructively so.

We never imagine that getting our heart’s deepest desires might be the worst thing that can ever happen to us.

Each chapter tackles an example of a modern idol, such as money, success, romantic love, or political ideology. He illustrates each one with well-chosen contemporary examples, and helps us to move beyond simply identifying these idols as out there in the culture, but seeing their pernicious effects at work in our own lives even as Christians.

we know a good thing has become a counterfeit god when its demands on you exceed proper boundaries.

He then picks out a Biblical character or story that illustrates each idol, often drawing out strikingly fresh insights from very familiar territory. Those who are familiar with Keller’s preaching will know that he is never content to simply tell a Bible story and draw out a few morals or lessons though. He always brings us to the gospel. Jesus is always brought in, as the one who is the greater version of the flawed hero of the story. As a result, this book also serves a double function as a masterclass in gospel-centred teaching.

we usually read the Bible as a series of disconnected stories, each with a “moral” for how we should live our lives. It is not. Rather, it comprises a single story, telling us how the human race got into its present condition, and how God through Jesus Christ has come and will come to put things right.

This book will not take you a long time to read, but you will need plenty of time to reflect on its message. It is a call first for us to examine the deep idols that have taken root in our own lives, but then to address them, not by trying to suppress them, but by supplanting them with a living encounter with God himself.

The only way to dispossess the heart of an old affection is by the expulsive power of a new one.

It deserves a wide readership amongst Christians, not so we can speak out against the idolatry of our culture (though we need to do that), but so that we can clean out the idols that have taken root in our own hearts. I also hope it is widely read by pastors and preachers, and that as a result, we will hear more gospel-centred preaching that gets to the heart of issues, rather than merely calling for behavioural change.

The secret to change is to identify and dismantle the counterfeit gods of your heart.

Jesus must become more beautiful to your imagination, more attractive to your heart, than your idol.

Book Review – CBC Habakkuk (Richard Patterson)

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This is another commentary contained within Volume 10 of the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary series, which I am gradually working my way through. For more thoughts on the layout of the series, see my review of Andrew Hill on Micah.

Introduction

We know very little about Habakkuk. Patterson assumes a pre-exilic date, most likely during the reigns of either Josiah or Manasseh. The central theme of the book is faith, and we see how, despite how Habakkuk felt about the injustice he saw, he brought his doubts and perplexities to God in prayer and came to a place of trust.

Commentary

The “notes” sections serve as a way of highlighting exegetical issues, particularly the meaning of individual key words. Patterson feels free to disagree with the NLT translation. The “commentary” on each section always moves from summarising the meaning of the passage to drawing out a significant theological theme and discussing it in the light of other related Biblical passages.

A good example would be how he handles Hab 2:4, where he first explores the meaning of the verse in Habakkuk, explaining faithfulness as having both an active (truthfulness) and a passive (trustworthiness) sense. He then goes on to show how the different ways in which it is used in the New Testament (Rom 1:17 and Heb 10:35-39), as well as pointing out the way it references Gen 15:6.

because the believer is one in whom God’s righteous character has been reproduced, he can be expected to conduct himself in a manner consistent with his renewed being. … a genuinely righteous person will live out the faith in faithful activity

Patterson also highlights the different names that Habakkuk uses for God throughout the book, and how they mirror his journey from doubt to a confident faith that meant he could trust in the Lord through the coming hour of judgment and rejoice no matter what may happen.

Conclusion

These CBC commentaries serve as good companions to a Bible study, allowing you to get a good understanding of the meaning of the text as well as seeing how they fit into a wider theological picture. They help you to break out of the trap of just focusing on the famous verses, and getting a better grasp of the message of the whole book. Whilst the exegetical notes aren’t exhaustive, they are fairly thorough, meaning that you would only need to go for a more technical commentary if you were doing more in-depth study on the book.

Book Review – CBC Nahum (Richard Patterson)

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This is another commentary contained within Volume 10 of the Cornerstone Biblical Commentary. See my review of Andrew Hill’s Commentary on Micah for my thoughts on the layout of this commentary series.

Introduction

Nahum’s main message is the impending doom of wicked Nineveh. We know very little of who Nahum is, but Patterson tentatively places him at a time when Israel were reduced to Assyrian vassalage during the reign of evil king Manasseh. Despite the predicament they find themselves in, Nahum believes in God who is still sovereign over the nations, and faithful to his covenant promises. Nahum portrays God as the “divine warrior”, who subdues nature and his enemies, while protecting his own people.

Commentary

On Nahum 1, a strong emphasis is placed on God’s sovereignty over the nations, his omnipotence and his justice. Nahum chapters 2 and 3 are focused more on the destruction of Nineveh. A lot of translation notes are provided explaining the difficulties determining the exact meaning of many of the verses. The included NLT translation smoothes over most of these difficulties. Enough historical and geographical information is given to help make sense of much of the imagery, including some historical details on the savage brutality and treachery of the Assyrian empire.

Despite the bleakness of much of Nahum’s prophecy, Patterson does manage to find some fruitful avenues for application including reflections on the justice of God and sovereignty of God, as well as the need to work to transform the evil within our society. As with the other volumes in this series, he willingly draws on other parts of the Bible to help shed light on the message of Nahum.

Conclusion

I appreciated the way this brief commentary helped me get a solid understanding of Nahum’s main message and put it into some sort of historical context. The way he ties in themes from Nahum with other Biblical passages is also very helpful for those who, like me, have always found Nahum a difficult book to “get anything out of”.

Book Review – BEC Philippians (Moises Silva)

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Introduction

This deserves credit for having one of the most engaging introductions of a commentary I have read. In 36 pages, he tackles the book from a wide variety of angles.

He is less certain than most that the Philippian church was in a good state of health. He in particular thinks that there may be some looming danger from the Judaizers – in fact, he thinks that most, if not all, of Paul’s “opponents” can be viewed as heterodox Jewish believers. Quite fascinating was his roundup of other commentaries. Since this is a revision of a commentary originally published in 1988, he deals with some of the new works that have come out since. Whilst there is high praise for O’Brien and Blockmeuhl, his opinion of Fee’s commentary is equivocal. He feels Fee misrepresented his opinions in a few places, and often when Fee is referenced in the footnotes it is to firmly reject his exegesis.

Commentary

The commentary itself follows the usual pattern of the Baker Exegetical Series. First is a section overview, followed by the author’s own translation. Then there are the comments on the text, dealt with usually in groups of about three verses at a time. At the end of each section, Silva provides a large number of additional notes, mainly dealing with translation or manuscript issues (which he clearly has a great interest in), and occasionally interacting with other commentators. Silva’s translation of Philippians is particularly useful, as he inserts a number of clarifying clauses, so that the translation reflects the sense he argues for in the commentary.

While there is plenty of attention given to the Greek grammar and vocabulary, Silva is always careful to move on to theological reflection. Silva demonstrates out that several of the grammatical problems of Philippians are minimized by the fact that many of the possible translations do not substantively differ from one another. In other words, we can often determine the main point being made even if we cannot discern the exact meaning of every phrase.

Points of Interest

Silva argues strongly that the “deliverance” of Phil 1:19 is salvation, not merely release from prison, though he acknowledges there may be some calculated ambiguity. He has some good comments on perseverance, which he sees as a running theme through the letter. He has some helpful theological reflection on suffering in his comments on Phil 1:29 and Phil 3:10. “The stinging reality of Christian suffering is our reminder that we have been united with Christ”.

On Phil 2:1-4 he points out that the true obstacle to unity is not the presence of legitimate differences of opinion but self-centredness. The opposition the Philippians were facing calls for steadfastness on their part, but this is only possible if they have unity, which in turn calls for humility. In Phil 2:6, the phrase μορφη θεου is equivalent to “being equal with God”, though it cannot be pressed to explain exactly how. In the same verse, he acknowledges that while we may not be able to detect the exact meaning of αρπαγμον, the sense is clear – Jesus refused to make a selfish choice with regards to his divinity.

In Phil 2:10, Paul stunningly applies Isa 45:23 to Jesus. Phil 2:12-13 is one of several places in Philippians that express the paradox of human and divine activity in salvation, and Silva offers some good theological reflection on this. The grumbling of Phil 2:14 is likely to be an allusion to the Israelites complaining against Moses. The best commentary on Phil 2:15 is Jesus’ words in Matt 5:14-16: you are already the light of the world – therefore shine.

In Phil 3:2, Paul is ironically (rather than abusively) characterizing these Judaizers as “dogs”. A great spiritual reversal has taken place – these Judaizers are the new Gentiles, while the Christian believers are the new Jews. He effectively rebuts Stendahl’s notion that in Phil 3:6 Paul is referring to his subjective conscience.

In Phil 3:9-11 we see Paul’s doctrine of salvation compressed into just a few sentences – justification, sanctification, and glorification. Silva makes the point that union with Christ, rather than justification by faith is at the heart of Paul’s soteriology. When Paul speaks of experiencing the power of Christ’s resurrection in Phil 3:10, he has in mind our spiritual transformation into the image of Christ.

Silva makes the case that antinomian libertines may not be the opponents in view in 3:12-4:1, and that it makes good sense to read this section as being against the Judaizers. In Phil 3:15, Paul is referring not to differences they may have with him, but differences they have amongst themselves – he paraphrases: “If there continue to be some disagreements among you, I trust that God will soon bring unanimity in your midst.”

About Euodia and Syntyche (Phil 4:2), Silva says “most likely, what we have here is not a personal quarrel between cantankerous old ladies but rather a substantive division within the church leadership, which from the beginning consisted largely of faithful women.” On Phil 4:4-7 Silva notes that “genuine Christian joy is not inward looking. It is not by concentrating on our need for happiness, but on the needs of others that we learn to rejoice.”

Conclusion

Philippians is served by several highly-rated commentaries. I found Fee’s extremely helpful when I read through it about 10 years ago. O’Brien and Blockmeuhl also get consistently high praise for their work. But this one deserves its reputation too. As any good commentary should, it helps you get right to the heart of what is being said and how it fits into the overall flow of the argument, but also brings out the practical and doctrinal application of the text. So even if you already have Fee, it is well worth your money getting Silva as well (especially since they don’t always agree on the interpretation).

Book Review – CBC Micah (Andrew Hill)

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Cornerstone Biblical Commentary Series

The Cornerstone Biblical Commentary series is relatively new, but already over half the volumes have been published. Eventually there will be 12 volumes covering the Old Testament, and eight covering the New. Most of the contributors have written more technical commentaries on the same or related books, but this series is aimed at the pastor and layperson. Each commentary features the text of the New Living Translation in full.

Each section of Scripture is then followed by a few pages of “notes”, often explaining the meaning or significance of a single word or phrase. After that follows the “commentary” itself, which consists mainly of a summary of the main emphasis of the passage in question. The commentators have a conviction of the unity of the Bible and that the whole of Scripture is God’s word, so often in this section, teaching from other parts of the Bible will be brought in to help clarify various themes.

The commentary on Micah is contained in Volume 10, which consists of commentaries on each of the 12 minor prophets, some authored by Andrew Hill, and the others by Richard Patterson. This 650 page volume represents a cost-effective way to get hold of a basic commentary on each of the minor prophets. Rather than waiting until I have read all 12 commentaries, I will review each of them as and when I finish them.

Introduction to Micah

The brief introduction covers all the bases of introducing us to when and where Micah prophesied, what the political situation was, and what little we know of Micah from the rest of Scripture. Assyria was emerging as a super-power at the time, and Hill sees the book of Micah as essentially a collection of prophetic sermons. He sees a recurring structure to the book of several pronouncements of doom, each followed up by a brief message of hope. The doom is judgement, and the hope is restoration, but the main character in both cases is Yahweh, the covenant God who jealously guards his relationship with his special possession, Israel, and will tolerate no idolatry.

Commentary

In some ways the New Living Translation itself functions as a commentary, with the translators feeling free to insert some explanatory phrases. For example, Micah 1:5 in the ESV reads:

All this is for the transgression of Jacob
and for the sins of the house of Israel.
What is the transgression of Jacob?
Is it not Samaria?
And what is the high place of Judah?
Is it not Jerusalem?

while the NLT makes this of it:

And why is this happening?
      Because of the rebellion of Israel—
      yes, the sins of the whole nation.
   Who is to blame for Israel’s rebellion?
      Samaria, its capital city!
   Where is the center of idolatry in Judah?
      In Jerusalem, its capital!

The translators help us out by turning Jacob into Israel, and explaining that Samaria here is a capital city, not a region. In fact, throughout the commentary I noticed many places in which the NLT helps you out with its translation. While I do prefer a more literal translation generally, it is in Old Testament prophetic books like Micah that the strengths of the NLT really shine through, as they often require a lot of background information to fully appreciate the meaning.

Micah 1:10-15 contains several puns on the names of various towns, so Hill has included a very clever poem by Peterson, which changes the names of the towns to make the puns work in English. It brings a lot of clarity to what otherwise would seem like an arbitrary list of places and comments.

As he moves through each section of the prophecy, Hill will often pick out a theme for application or theological reflection, such as covetousness in Micah 2:1-5, and the concept of a remnant in Micah 2:12-13. These effectively function as hints for preachers for ways they could apply the message of Micah to their congregations.

Both in the “notes” (for exegesis) and “commentary” (for exposition) sections, Hill often draws on the insights of other commentators. The notes section usually give an even covering of the text, picking up on words and phrases from most verses, but the commentary section is not always so thorough. For example, commenting on Micah 3, Hill chooses to use all the space for a discussion of the revelation of the Trinity in the Old Testament, prompted by the mention of the Spirit in Micah 3:8.

He detects a liturgical hymn in chapter 7, and explains the difference between a lamentation (an expression of grief over a calamity that cannot be reversed), and a lament (an appeal to God’s compassion for the purpose of changing a desperate situation for the better), and shows how an appreciation of the various elements of the lament tradition would be beneficial for us today.

Conclusion

Like many of the Old Testament prophetic books, Micah is known mainly for a couple of ‘famous’ verses (Micah 6:8 and Micah 5:2). Hill’s commentary provides an accessible way to get a bigger picture of Micah’s message. The NLT translation helps the reader to see the flow and cohesiveness of the prophecy in a way that many readers would miss in a more literal translation.

The “notes” section might be skipped over by some readers, as it may seem like a disjointed collection of exegetical trivia, but on the other hand, for those studying a passage, it provides a lot of useful information.

The “commentary” section, on the other hand, gives a helpful overview of the main message of Micah as well as some good practical application and theological reflection, and could provide a useful starting point for preparing a sermon, although given the limited space, will not necessarily address all the questions you might bring to the text.

I’m looking forward to reading several of the other commentaries in this volume, as I think it strikes a nice balance, and has been a good companion to my daily reading of Scripture.

Book Review – The First and Second Letters to the Thessalonians (Gordon Fee)

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This is a replacement volume in the New International Commentary on the New Testament series (NICNT), provided by the series editor, Gordon Fee. His reputation as a biblical scholar and commentator is first-rate, and as one would expect, this is another fine contribution. The series now features the text of the TNIV, although commentators are free to disagree with the translation and provide their own preferred alternatives.

The introduction is relatively brief (there is a separate introduction for each book). 1 Thessalonians is dated around AD49, most likely sent during Paul’s visit to Corinth, and with Timothy delivering the letter in person.

1 Thessalonians

The structure of the book is simple, with the first three chapters forming a lengthy introduction consisting of thanksgiving, narrative and prayer, before the final two chapters address the reason for writing – to answer questions concerning the sanctity of marriage, the refusal of some to work, and the timing of the second coming.

Fee regularly points out the high Christology that is to be found in 1 Thessalonians, particularly in the way that Paul will echo Old Testament passages but use Lord to refer to Jesus (e.g. in 3:13). On top of this, in 1:3 and 3:11 he indentifies precursors of Paul’s inserting Jesus into the Shema which he does more explicitly in 1 Cor 8:6.

Contrary to most commentators, he argues for infant rather than gentle in 2:7 – Paul and his companions were innocent like infants. There are some helpful comments on perseverance on 2:11-12 and 3:5, noting that our perseverance depends ultimately on God’s absolute faithfulness (5:23).  He argues that the polemic of 2:14-16 does not fall on the entire Jewish community but on those who were specifically responsible for killing Christ. He shows how the crown in 2:19 refers to a laurel wreath at the Roman games, which Paul pictures as the Thessalonians themselves.

The “vessel” of 4:4 is considered to be a euphemism for the male sexual organ. He provides some helpful comments on how the Holy Spirit enables us to walk in holiness (4:7-8). I was a little surprised, given how much emphasis Green puts on the client-patron relationship as the background to the letter, that Fee does not interact with this possibility at all in 4:11-12.

Fee considers the question behind 4:13-18 to be “what has happened to those who died before the second coming”? He criticises those who try to speculatively go beyond the main point of this passage, with especially strong censure for the “Left Behind” interpretation. He diffuses the debate concerning “going to heaven” versus living on the new earth somewhat, by pointing out that for Paul, our final eschatological “geography” was a secondary concern, whereas his interest was primarily personal – we will be with the Lord.

The short section on prophecy in 5:19-22 is of interest as Fee brings a Pentecostal perspective to bear, noting that there is no hermeneutical justification for modern-day prohibition of prophecy. He argues, drawing on evidence from Romans and 1 Corinthians as well that prophecy seemed to be part of the normal activity of the early church, and reminds us that the solution to abuse is not disuse but proper use. He proposes two tests of prophecy: a test of content (is it doctrinally correct?) and purpose (is it given to edify?). In 5:23, whilst he acknowledges that Paul probably would have made some kind of distinction in meaning between soul and spirit, he is not thinking in terms of humans as a trichotomy here. With regards to the “holy kiss” of 5:26, Fee points out how it would have crossed social boundary lines of slave/free, rich/poor and Jew/Gentile (although he fails to mention male/female! – not sure what they did there).

2 Thessalonians

The introduction to 2 Thessalonians briefly sets forth 9 reasons for considering it to be authentically Pauline and dates it c. 50, shortly after the first letter. It is written in response to the news brought back from Timothy, that the “disruptive idle” were a bigger problem than first thought, that some were misrepresenting Paul’s eschatological views, and that the persecution had increased in severity.

In chapter 2, Fee is at pains to remind us that we do not have the “insider knowledge” that the Thessalonians and Paul shared, making it impossible for us to answer all the questions we may have without resorting to guesswork. Additionally, we need to recognise Paul’s purpose (to encourage believers facing persecution) in these eschatological passages is often far removed from our own (to gather information for our end-times theology). As such, he refrains from speculating on who the “Rebel” (man of lawlessness) is, and who or what is holding him back.

As with the commentary on first letter, Fee is eager to point out the high Christology and Trinitarian soteriology to be found in this early letter. The commentary also benefits from his extensive prior work on Pauline pneumatology, and his comments are incisive when it comes to the work of the Spirit. Having said that, I was hoping he would elucidate a bit more on how exactly the sanctifying work of the Spirit relates to our salvation in 2:13.

Another thread running through the commentary is Fee pointing out numerous places that are so authentically Pauline in theology, grammar, vocabulary and concerns that by the end he declares that the theory of 2 Thessalonians as a forgery no longer deserves any place in NT scholarship.

Conclusion

As with all Fee’s commentaries, this one is an excellent resource for any Bible teacher or student, and is easily equal to my previous favourite on Thessalonians (Green’s Pillar Commentary). Fee is thorough, without being long-winded. Despite it being a primarily exegetical commentary, he is not afraid to put a paragraph or two of application in at the end of each section, with suggestions of lessons the modern church needs to be aware of. Whenever he differs from the majority view in either translation or meaning, he always makes his case persuasively. The right amount of material is relegated to the footnotes, which mostly deal with further manuscript evidence or the views of other commentators, but occasionally provide some additional theological reflection.

Book Review – GodStories (Andrew Wilson)

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After thoroughly enjoying Andrew Wilson’s previous book, Incomparable, I was very much looking forward to getting my hands on this one. In many ways, the format is very similar. There are lots of short three or four page chapters, each of which can be read standalone as a daily devotion. Interspersed throughout the book are “coffee breaks” which encourage you to reflect a while on what you have been learning.

The subject of GodStories is the gospel. The book presents the gospel as one big story, broken into lots of little stories. At first I thought this meant it would be a metanarrative type book, similar to Vaughan Robert’s God’s Big Picture, but although Wilson moves through the Bible in a roughly chronological manner, each of the little chapters is self-contained, and often draws out the New Testament fulfilment of the Old Testament stories immediately.

As with Incomparable, the book is written in a way that will be very accessible to teens and twenties, with plenty of illustrations drawn from contemporary films and culture. The book is broken up into five “acts” (a nod to Tom Wright?), which are:

  1. Creation and Fall
  2. Israel and History
  3. Poets and Prophets
  4. Jesus and Rescue
  5. Restoration and Hope

As well as taking you through some of the main storyline of the Old Testament (creation, fall, flood, Abraham, tabernacle etc), he dips into the prophets, again making some of the big themes from these difficult biblical books very easy to grasp. A number of chapters echoed the emphases of Chris Wright in his superb “Mission of God” book. Also there are shades of Tom Wright as he highlights similarities in the rhetoric used by the Roman empire to describe the emperor to those used by Luke and other New Testament writers.

The longest Act, “Jesus and Rescue” features several chapters dealing with various aspects of the atonement. There is some excellent material here, and Wilson is not afraid to tackle some theological hot potatoes such as penal substitution and the New Perspective on Paul. Whilst the majority of this book is theologically non-controversial, he’s not afraid to let his distinctives show from time to time.

One of his greatest strengths is to take deep theological truths and present them in a very straightforward manner, yet without dumbing them down. Some of his illustrations are brilliant, and I certainly plan to make use of a few of them for in my own teaching. Overall, this is a great follow-up to Incomparable, and I look forward to seeing what comes next from him.

Book Review – Slave of Christ (Murray Harris)

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This is volume 8 in the “New Studies in Biblical Theology” series. These books take a single topic and trace it right through the Bible or New Testament. They are not typically light reading, but serve as very useful background material for those preparing for preaching or simply wanting to get some in-depth insight into major biblical themes. The subject here is that of the use of “slave of Christ” as a metaphor for total devotion to Christ.

One of the interesting issues this book raises is that modern Bible translators shy away from using the word ‘slave’ to translate doulos. This is undoubtedly due to the negative connotations that slavery carries, but Harris believes that we miss out on a true appreciation of the meaning by toning the terminology down to just “servant”, which loses the connotation of belonging.

The book begins with a fascinating survey of the nature of slavery in Roman, Greek and Jewish cultures of the first century. These, rather than the African slave trade of the 18th century form the conceptual background to the use of this term in the New Testament.

A slave may be defined as “someone whose person and service belong wholly to another”. Roman slavery law was complex, and up to a quarter of people were slaves in the Roman empire, doing a wide range of work. Surprisingly, most Roman slaves were able to gradually earn money, allowing themselves to buy their freedom through “manumission” by their 30s.

Harris explores whether the NT could be said to “endorse” slavery, since it lacks any explicit repudiation of it. It is true that the NT seems to accept it as the status quo, yet sees the gospel as being the means of the breakdown of the slave/free distinction. The NT is able to use slavery as a negative metaphor (such as bondage for sin), but also uses it in a positive sense to illustrate the humble way in which believers are to serve Christ. Paul strongly hints to Philemon that Onesiphorus should be freed, but refrains from commanding it. Harris suggests a variety of reasons why the NT lacks an explicit condemnation of slavery. Ultimately, the NT’s aim is first at personal transformation, which should then result in societal transformation.

Then follow four chapters exploring different aspects of slavery as used in the metaphor of slavery to Christ. First, freedom in the NT is presented as voluntary surrender to God’s will. The freedom we have in the gospel is not for license, but in order that we might be slaves to Christ. He shows how Paul in Rom 6:15-23 contrasts two slaveries. Everyone is either a slave to sin (Satan as master) or righteousness (Christ as master) – there is no third option. Christians need to beware the danger of temporarily reverting to slavery to sin.

Secondly, Harris shows how the whole concept of Christ as Lord depends heavily on the slave metaphor – where there is a slave there is a lord. A slaves duty was first to obey any explicit commands from their lord, and second, in the absence of such commands, to take actions that will please the master. The NT also expresses our obligations to serve one another through the slave metaphor.

Third, slavery connotes ownership. He sees water baptism “into” the name of Jesus, as representing a legal transfer of ownership. Harris explores several ways you could become a slave in Roman society and contrasts this with the way we become slaves of Christ.

Fourth, Harris addresses the suggestion of some that “slave of God” was actually intended as a title of privilege, i.e. applying only to very important Christian leaders such as Paul. Harris agrees that it is an honour to be a slave of such a great and gracious master, but argues that to be a slave of Christ (or of God) is a privilege for all believers, not just a few.

Harris claims that the concept of slavery to Christ is central to the NT concept of discipleship. Whilst the NT authors would be aware of the negative connotations of the slavery metaphor, the concept of slavery to Christ is presented as entirely positive – it represents our exclusive devotion to Christ, expressed in humble submission, unquestioning obedience and and exclusive preoccupation with pleasing him.

He then deals with two texts that might possibly be considered contradictions to the concept that a believer is the slave of Christ. The first is John 15:15 and the second Gal 4:7. He argues that these do not invalidate the metaphor of slavery to Christ, but rather define its boundaries and limitations. We are both sons and slaves.

A final chapter explores four case studies of characters in the NT demonstrating what it means to be a slave of Christ. These are Dorcas, Onesiphorus, Priscilla and Aquila. The book has three appendixes, the most interesting being the one where he explores the translation of doulos and calls on Bible translators to make more regular use of slave as its translation, particularly where slavery to Christ is in view.

Overall I would say this is a fascinating study on a theme that is regularly overlooked due to the reluctance of modern translators to use the term ‘slave’. It has certainly made me more aware when the term “servant” or “serve” comes up that there may be a root word of doulos underneath. There is however more to be explored on the relationship between the two metaphors of Christians as slaves of Christ and sons of God, though. Is one primary and the other secondary? Can they be held together easily? But apart from that unresolved issue I found this book very helpful. In particular, the metaphor of slavery sheds light on the exhortations to live with the ambition of pleasing the Lord.

Book Review – Fire and Blood (Mark Stibbe)

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In this book, Mark Stibbe explores the relationship between the work of the Spirit and the work of the cross. He recognises there is a divide in evangelicalism between those whose primary emphasis is the cross and those whose primary emphasis is the Spirit. Some are after holiness, others healing; some ask for more of the cross, others for more power. Stibbe seeks to show in this book that the two are not necessarily in opposition to one another – the Spirit leads us to the cross, and the cross leads us to the Spirit.

Part One of the book explores the fact of the cross, and in particular highlights the role of the Spirit. The Spirit’s role in the Old Testament was to give the prophets a vision of what was to come – the suffering Messiah and his exaltation. He then moves on to consider the life and death of Jesus. Jesus was not just man of the cross, but man of the Spirit. The Spirit anointed Jesus for works of power and for affliction.

The Jordan experience was an anointing for sacrifice as well as an empowerment for service.

Stibbe argues that the Spirit enabled and empowered Jesus right to his death. Though he was lonelty, he was not alone. He sees evidence of the Spirit’s presence in Jesus’ prayer of “Abba, Father”. Drawing on Gordon Fee’s commentary, he shows how Col 1:10,11 reveals that the power of the Spirit is not always for signs and wonders, but is also power for endurance and patience. This is the power of the Spirit that Jesus experienced at the cross.

Finally in the first section of the book, Stibbe shows how Calvary led to Pentecost, and in particular, how Pentecost marked a new era in how the Spirit relates to believers. He is now universally, internally and permanently available for all God’s people.

The second part of the book explores the life of the believer. How does the work of the Spirit relate to the cross-shaped life? One of the great advantages of exploring the cross with regard to the work of the Spirit, is that it results in a Trinitarian perspective on the atonement. The Father plans salvation, the Son does the work of salvation, and the Spirit applies our salvation.

The Spirit leads us to the cross in revelation. The cross leads us to the Spirit in regeneration.

He then explores the work of the Spirit under three headings: Jesus saves, heals and delivers. Every salvation is a miracle where the Holy Spirit reveals the power of the cross to an unredeemed mind. But also, the evidence of the New Testament is that even after the ministry of Jesus, the Spirit continued to work miracles of healing. Stibbe’s comments on healing are some of the most helpful I have come across. He does not believe that healing is automatic in the atonement, but at the cross, Jesus defeated the power that lies behind human sickness. As we live in the time between the ages, our prayers for healing are either answered with a “now” or a “not yet”.

Interestingly, he then goes on to argue for a trichotomous human nature (body, spirit, soul). So Jesus saves our spirits, heals our bodies, and delivers our souls, which Stibbe defines as the mind, will and emotions. The Spirit brings deliverance to us in regards to bondage in these areas too.

The final chapter starts by pointing out that the book of Mark falls into two halves – one of miracles, and one of martyrdom. From the first half we might deduce a theology of glory, but from the second, a theology of the cross.

the way of discipleship involves suffering as well as glory, martyrdom as well as miracles, the cross as well as the Spirit.

He goes on to apply this to our sanctification, which is also by the cross and the Spirit. Some emphasise the need for self-denial, for taking up the cross. Others simply focus on being filled with the Spirit. Both work together in our sanctification. Stibbe warns that the neglect of the doctrine of mortification has produced consumeristic believers who want the life of the Spirit without the crucifixion of their flesh. He brings the book to a close with some reflections on how the cross and Spirit help us to face our own death in a hope-filled manner.

This book has much to commend it, and should definitely be on the reading list of anyone who has struggled with the tensions between the differing emphases of the charismatic and evangelical camps. Mark Stibbe is a good writer and packs the book full of helpful illustrations, quotations from a wide variety of theologians and interesting bits of historical background. The thing I most appreciate about this book is how he brings some very necessary correction of emphasis to charismatic theology that has lost sight of the cross, but without ever doing so at the expense of the appreciation of the miraculous work of the Spirit. It is a shame this book is not more well known. If there is another book that explores the connection between the cross and Spirit so well, I am not aware of it (let me know in the comments).